The sun had fully risen, signaling the start of a new morning.
Rock Village was in complete disarray.
Homes lay in ruins after the monsters' rampage, trees were uprooted, and devastation stretched in every direction.
The air was still heavy with the scent of smoke and scorched earth.
Badang came to beneath a large tree, with Samar beside him—just waking up after having passed out.
"Urgh… what happened…" Badang muttered, rubbing his still-throbbing head.
Samar looked around, his vision still blurry.
"Our village… it's almost completely destroyed…"
"Where's Ilyas?" Badang asked, scanning the area around them.
Badang and Samar slowly got to their feet, their eyes scanning the area, searching for any sign of Ilyas.
In the distance, they saw Ilyas sitting quietly with his back to them, facing a freshly-dug grave, the soil still red and loose.
They slowly approached Ilyas, trying to get a better look at the grave.
"Ilyas… is that…" Samar's voice faltered midway, the words too heavy to finish.
Ilyas turned around. His face was blank—no sadness, no expression at all.
He rose slowly and walked toward them, gently patting Badang and Samar on the shoulder.
"Don't worry…"
"… He's resting peacefully now."
The three of them turned their gaze to the modest headstone in front of them.
Etched into it was a name they all knew: Badrul.
Silence enveloped them.
Samar's tears began to fall.
He could no longer hold back the grief that pressed heavily on his chest.
In front of Badrul's grave, he dropped to his knees—limp, as if all his strength had been stripped away by a truth too bitter to accept.
"Fuck… just like that... you and Nisa left me…" he said through sobs that shook his whole body.
Even though he had resolved to kill Badrul for all the evil he had done, deep down… a part of him had still held on to hope.
A hope that one day, Badrul would return to being the friend he once knew—the one they all knew.
Badang stood frozen.
His eyes didn't blink as he stared at the headstone bearing the name of the twin who had once been half of himself.
His heart felt hollow.
A part of his soul had been buried deep—along with Badrul.
Now… the battle was truly over.
Ilyas, Badang, and Samar walked slowly away from the Badrul's grave, heading back toward the shelter hall.
Their steps were heavy, wrapped in a silence none of them dared to break—until Samar finally spoke.
"Ilyas…"
"Hm?"
"Do you… do you know why Badrul turned out that way?"
Their steps came to a halt.
The question hung in the air—heavy, and filled with wounds that had yet to heal.
Samar took a breath, trying to steady the trembling in his chest.
"I… I still can't believe he was willing to destroy the whole village…"
"…just because of his own desire."
Both of them turned to Ilyas, eyes filled with hope—hoping that all of it hadn't been Badrul's choice, that someone else had been behind the disaster.
Ilyas fell silent for a moment.
"Yeah..."
"Badrul didn't do all of it on his own."
"Unless... he met another Receiver—and was manipulated by them."
Badang looked at Ilyas, his brow furrowed.
"How do you know that?"
"Before he died… I managed to ask him to tell me everything that happened while he was out there."
"Even though I didn't even need to ask him about it."
Samar cut in, his voice laced with anger and unease.
"Do you know what that Receiver looked like?"
"He wore a black cloak and a full mask—it covered his entire face. But the one thing that stood out the most…"
"… there was a sunset pattern on his forehead."
Badang flinched. He stared at Ilyas for a long moment, his expression shifting.
But it wasn't the appearance of another Receiver that shocked him—
… it was because he recognized the description Ilyas had just given.
Ilyas looked at Badang, knowing he was hiding something.
"Badang… you know them, don't you?"
Samar turned to Badang too, waiting for an answer.
Badang took a slow breath. His face darkened.
"Yeah… I know about them."
And so, Badang began to speak—about everything that had happened after Badrul's first attack.
At the time, the village was trying to rise again.
The villagers worked together, rebuilding the collapsed houses, fixing whatever could still be saved.
But Badang… couldn't forgive himself.
He distanced himself from the village—leaving everyone behind for a while—because the guilt was choking his soul.
"Why did this power only awaken… after everything was already destroyed?"
He clenched his fists so tightly that they bled, as if trying to punish himself.
And in that moment… a woman emerged from the shadows of dusk.
Clad in a black cloak.
She wore a full mask, with a sunset pattern etched onto her forehead.
She walked slowly, approaching Badang as he sat slumped in despair.
Badang tried to speak to the woman.
"Who are you?"
The woman continue walking toward Badang without saying a word.
Badang found her silence strange— a little unsettling. He tried once more to speak to the mysterious woman, this time with a gentler tone.
"If you're in some kind of trouble, I might be able to help… a little."
The woman was now standing right in front of Badang, staring at him with a blank expression.
It was as if she was examining his body, scanning him closely.
A growing unease settled over Badang, and he quickly backed away.
"What are you doing?!"
The woman simply stared at Badang with that same empty expression, then finally spoke.
"Perfect."
Badang was confused by the word she uttered.
"What do you mean by that…"
Before he could finish his question, the woman back away slowly. the fog thickened, and the woman vanished into the dense mist.
Uneasy and disturbed, Badang returned to the village, his mind in turmoil.
"Ilyas… do you have any idea what she meant?" Badang asked —hoping Ilyas had an answer that could ease his troubled heart.
But Ilyas remained silent.
They looked at each other.
Silence.
Seconds passed, though it felt like an eternity.
As if the world itself had paused, waiting for the answer.
Finally, Ilyas shook his head slowly.
"No."
Badang lowered his head slightly, his lips pressed into a tight line.
He took a deep breath… then exhaled slowly, filled with disappointment.
It wasn't the answer he wanted to hear.
The three of them finally reached the shelter hall.
The air was thick with chaos and grief.
People moved frantically, tending to the injured—some with broken bones, others bleeding badly, and some who hadn't survived the brutal battle.
A woman was asked to fetch some water for the wounded.
She headed toward one of the tents to get it.
As she did, her eyes fell on some silhouette
Her eyes widened, and her expression changed in an instant.
"They're back!" she shouted, her voice echoing through the hall.
The other villagers turned to look.
And the moment they saw Badang, Ilyas, and Samar walking in… everything came to a halt.
The eyes that had moments ago been filled with exhaustion and tears now changed—filled with relief, emotion, and gratitude. Some began to smile.
Some stood up immediately and rushed toward them.
Some broke down in tears.
Others cheered their names.
Because at the moment their village was nearly destroyed,
These three had emerged as a symbol of hope.
"Thank you… thank you!"
"Thank you, Badang!"
"Thank you for saving us"
Khai, Agus, Raden, and Raka saw Ilyas return safely, and a wave of relief washed over them.
Through the crowd pressing around the trio, Tok Hussein and Mak Sari slowly stepped forward.
His face was serious, his steps calm—but the worry in his eyes was unmistakable.
He stood directly in front of Badang.
"Badang…"
With a voice that wavered slightly, he asked the question.
"… what happened to Badrul?"
The question dropped like a heavy stone into the heart of the moment.
At once, the villagers surrounding them fell silent.
Every gaze turned to Badang—eyes filled with hope and desperate curiosity.
Badang fell silent.
His eyes lowered.
He took a deep breath—long and slow.
But still, the words wouldn't come easily.
His throat felt tight.
Because even though he had seen it with his own eyes... it was still hard to believe what had happened to Badrul.
"Badrul…"
"… is gone."
Like a bolt of lightning, the news struck everyone with shock.
Mak Sari collapsed to the ground in disbelief.
Tears streamed down her cheeks as she heard the news that her son was no longer alive.
The child she had carried for nine months was gone—forever.
Tok Hussein recalled the moment he first held newborn Badrul in his arms.
Regret tightened around his chest—because Badrul's childhood had been filled with loneliness and pain, the result of his own emotional instability.
The air fell silent and still after the devastating news was spoken.
But then…
"Finally..."
That voice broke through the heavy silence of grief.
"Finally, the source of all our problems is dead!"
Everyone flinched.
Then, another voice responded,
"Our village is finally safe!"
Little by little, cheers began to rise.
And in the blink of an eye, the sorrow turned into celebration.
The crowd erupted in cheers—rejoicing over Badrul's death.
Watching it unfold, Badang finally understood what Badrul had meant all along.
This is...
…the true nature of people.
The very ones he had known since childhood — who had always treated him with warmth and kindness —
Now cheered the death of someone who had once risked his life for them.
Tok Hussein and Mak Sari could only remain silent.
The words spoken by the crowd struck their hearts like knives slicing slowly.
Khai, Agus, Raden, and Raka looked around in horror—they never imagined this would be the reaction.
Khai, holding Luna in his arms, covered her ears.
Samar could no longer hold back his anger. His heart raged at the sight of his friend being mocked after all the sacrifices he had made.
He stepped forward, as if ready to confront them.
But Badang raised his hand, stopping him.
"What are you doing, Badang?! Don't you hear what they're saying...?!"
Samar shouted, his voice loud and trembling—burning with fury that was quickly rising.
But then, a chill ran down Samar's spine as he looked at Badang's face.
There was something terrifying in that gaze—something he had never seen before.
In silence, Badang sank into memories of his time with Badrul.
Though others often branded Badrul a troublemaker, to Badang, he was just a lonely boy…
A child starved of love.
And that was why Badang had made a vow—to always stand by his twin's side.
No matter what happened.
But now...
All of that was just a memory.
For the first time in his life—
Badang felt a burning, uncontrollable anger.